SALT LAKE – It’s not how you start, it’s how you finish; thus was the theme for Moanalua in their win over Nanakuli Wednesday night.

Na Menehune, ranked No. 9 in the ScoringLive/OC16 Girls Basketball Power Rankings, overcame a seven-point halftime deficit to defeat the visiting Golden Hawks in the quarterfinal round of the Oahu Interscholastic Association Red Division Girls Basketball Playoffs. The win also clinches a berth into the 2014 Hawaiian Airlines Division I Girls Basketball Championships.

“This is very big,” said Moanalua senior LaChae McColor, who tied a game-high of 12 points. “My four years (since) being a freshman on varsity, we never got to this point so I’m really proud of my teammates. If it wasn’t for my teammates, we couldn’t have done it. This is a really big game for us to win.”

McColor spearheaded the second half surge, scoring 11 of her 12 points in the second half. McColor also finished with eight rebounds, three steals and two assists. 

“(I) Just played hard,” McColor said on her performance. “I know this was a big game for us and for my team; I had to do anything to get us to (where we needed to be). I just wanted to win.” 

The score was tied at 45-all with 7.4 seconds remaining in overtime. Out of the timeout, Moanalua point guard Ciera O’Brien received the ball near midcourt and went to work. O’Brien dribbled past her defender and pulled up near the elbow for a 17-foot jump shot. Her shot rang true through the bucket giving the home team the lead with 1.2 left on the clock.

“I knew we needed a shot so I just went in and put it up, and I’m lucky I made it,” said O’Brien regarding her game-winner. “I’m just still shocked and I’m so excited that I made it.”

“That wasn’t the designed play,” laughed Moanalua coach Tani Almont-Done. “They made it work but the initial pass was not supposed to go there – but in the big games, those are the clutch shots that you need to hit and she hit a big one for us.” 

This was a redeeming moment for O’Brien who turned the ball over two times in the final minute of regulation. O’Brien was whistled for an offensive foul beyond the arc with 57.5 on the clock. This turnover led to the game tying points for the Golden Hawks. She also later turned it over on an errant pass, but Nanakuli blew the wide-open layup on the fast break and Moanalua was able to recover for the last shot attempt of the game. 

“I had to make up for that, and plust that other turnover before, I had to make up for that to,” said O’Brien. “It would have been all my fault, but thank goodness they missed.”

Immediately after the shot, Nanakuli called timeout in hopes to come up with a play that will allow the Golden Hawks to advance the ball within such a small timeframe. The play looked dead, but the Golden Hawks were blessed with an escape when Moanalua’s Keahi-lele Roy got called for a blocking foul before the ball was inbound. This sent Nanakuli’s Angelica Chun Fook to the line with a chance to tie the game. Unfortunately for the Golden Hawks, Chun Fook would only connect on the first of her two attempts and Na Menehune was able to come away with the win.

Nanakuli overcame a six first quarter turnovers to take a 15-8 lead after one quarter of play. Leading the Golden Hawks in the opening period was 6-foot-3 junior Jade Marfil, scoring all of her eight points in the quarter. 

“We just have this thing with the first quarter,” Almont-Done said. “Every game we just put ourselves in a hole in the first quarter so we have to fix that.”

Foul trouble plagued Na Menehune in the second quarter and the Golden Hawks were able to take advantage, even leading by as much as 13 points with 1:42 remaining in the first half.

“It was difficult because they have a big lineup in there,” Almont-Done said. 

Fortunately for Na Menehune, they were able to close out the first half on a 6-0 run to make the score 31-24 at the break.

“We were getting outhustled,” Almont-Done said regarding the first half deficit. “There’s not too many adjustments to be made if you’re just getting outhustled. There wasn’t any surprises for either (team) so we need to get out there and hustle. Nanakuli played with some heart tonight and they were out here to win.” 

Keeping Moanalua in the game in the first half was sophomore Jazmina Lafitaga. The 5-foot-6 guard scored 10 of her 12 points in the first half. Lafitaga also finished with eight rebounds and a steal in the win. 

“She chose a good night to start to put it all together,” Almont-Done said on Lafitaga. “As a sophomore getting out there, playing in these games, there’s a lot of things that she was still learning. Tonight it clicked for her. She was ready to play, she was focused and she needed to step it up. This was the time she needed to do it and she did it.”

“She’s a young player but she knows the game,” McColor added on Lafitaga’s performance. “As time progresses, I know she’s going to do well. She just got to keep playing hard and she’s a great player. If it wasn’t for her and her contributions, we couldn’t have done it without her.” 

Moanalua clamped down defensively in the third quarter, holding Nanakuli to only four points. The Golden Hawks also didn’t do themselves any favor at the free throw line, missing all of their attempts at the line in the third quarter. Free throws in general played a huge part in Nanakuli’s demise, only converting nine of their 25 total attempts. 

Na Menehune outscored Nanakuli by 11 points in the third quarter, which allowed the home team to take a 39-35 lead heading into the final period of regulation. This third quarter differential was just enough to propel Moanalua into the semifinals and the state tournament. 

“This is what they wanted, this is what they’ve been waiting for,” Almont-Done said after the game. “These girls (that) I have, none of them have seen that. For us, tonight was a big accomplishment.”

Moanalua will play No. 4 Mililani in the nightcap of the OIA Red semifinal round, which will be held at Radford’s Jim Alegre Gymnasium on Jan. 25. The game will be televised statewide on OC16.